I waited for him to pull back. To remember whatever walls we’d built between us during our last fight.
Instead, his hand slid up to cup my jaw, tilting my head back against his shoulder so he could trail his lips down the exposedcolumn of my throat. Like he had all the time in the world to absolutelyruinme.
“Varyth—”
“You were saying something about the pain tonic?” His teeth scraped against my pulse point, and I felt him smile when I couldn’t quite suppress the sound that escaped me. “About me being delirious?”
“Yes.” The word came out strangled. “Very delirious. Possibly concussed.”
“Strange.” His hand drifted back down, fingertips grazing the underside of my breast through the thin fabric of my sleep shirt. “I feel remarkably lucid.”
“This is—” I broke off when his teeth found my earlobe. “Fuck.”
“Is?” he prompted, sounding far too pleased with himself.
“Complicated.”
“Life is complicated.” His hand found my jaw and tilted my face toward him, and gods, his eyes were molten silver in the darkness. “This is simple.”
“I’m still pissed at you,” I said, but it came out weak. Unconvincing.
“Good.” His hand slid under my shirt—skin on skin—and the sound he made against my throat when his palm found my ribs was sinful.
Before I could process that, before I could ask why the fuckgoodwas his response to me being angry?—
A knock cut through the room.
We both froze.
For a single, horrible moment, neither of us moved. Varyth’s hand was under my shirt, his mouth pressed against my throat, his breathing as ragged as mine.
Another knock. More insistent.
“Fuck off,” Varyth growled against my skin, and the sound vibrated through my entire body.
His teeth found the curve where my neck met my shoulder, not quite breaking skin, just pressure and heat and a scrape that sent electricity sparking down my spine. Then his tongue traced the same path, soothing the nip, and I had to bite down on my own lip to keep from making a sound that would destroy whatever dignity I had left.
“Varyth.” Darian’s voice came through the door, apologetic but firm. “It’s important.”
Varyth’s hand tightened on my hip, fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. Another growl rumbled through his chest, this one pure frustration and utterly feral.
“Define important,” he snarled, but he’d stopped moving. Stopped kissing. His forehead dropped against my shoulder, and his breathing was as ragged as mine.
“Very important.” Fenric now, carrying that edge of urgency that said this wasn’t going away. “As in, you’re really going to want to hear this.”
“For fuck’s sake.” Varyth lifted his head, and the look in his eyes was pure murder. Silver gone molten with frustration and something darker.
Right. We were about to be interrupted by his entire inner circle.
In his bedroom.
Where I was currently sprawled in his bed wearing nothing but a sleep shirt and the world’s worst decision-making skills.
“You should—” I started, trying to inject some rationality into the situation. “You should probably deal with that.”
His jaw clenched so hard I heard his teeth grind together. “I’m going to kill them both.”
“Later.” I shoved at his chest, trying to ignore how warm his skin was beneath my palms. How solid. How much I wanted topull him back down instead of push him away. “Go. Before they break down the door.”
